This invention relates generally to scanners, copiers, facsimile machines, digital cameras and other devices used for transforming an optical image of a object into a electronic signal and more specifically to stamping additional information into the electronic image during the digitizing process.
Scanning systems typically contain a host computer connected to a scanner. Scanners are devices that transform an optical image of a document into electronic form. Scanners typically have lenses and mirrors that focus an image of the page to be transformed onto a photo sensor array, a lamp to illuminate the page to be transformed, and a photo sensor array that coverts the image into an electronic signal. The photo sensor array is typically a charged-coupled device (CCD). The area of the page focused onto the CCD is usually referred to as the xe2x80x9cscan linexe2x80x9d. The direction along the scan line is typically called the scan width or X-direction. The entire object is scanned by sweeping the illuminated scan line across the entire object, either by moving the object with respect to the illumination and optical assemblies, or by moving the illumination and optical assemblies relative to the object. The direction of relative movement is typically called the scan length or Y-direction. Scanners can create data at a different rate than can be sent to the host computer. To compensate for the differing data creation rate and data transfer rate scanners typically contain memory locations for the temporary storage of some of the scanned image data.
The electric signals created by the CCD are converted into digital form and stored as digital images. Digital images are typically divided into pixels, where each pixel represents a small area of the original image (typically {fraction (1/300)} or {fraction (1/600)} of an inch). For a color digital image each pixel typically has three numbers that represent the amount of red, green, and blue content of the image at that location. Each of the three numbers has a potential range of values. Typically the numbers can range in values between 0 and 255. In a computer it takes 8 bits to represent the range from 0 to 255. The total number of bits to represent all three colors is 24 bits (3xc3x978). Therefore many digital images are stored in a 24-bit format.
Digital cameras create digital images by focusing the image of an object, through a lens, onto an area sensor array. The electronic signal from the area sensor array is then digitized and stored in memory as a digital image. Digital cameras typically contain sufficient memory to store a number of digital images. Digital images typically contain a header area and a data area. The header information contains data for the specific file type being used to store the image (Some example image file types are tiff, bmp, and JPEG). The data area of the file contains the color information for each pixel or sample in the image. The color information for images from digital cameras typically is represented in 24-bit format. The digital images can be transferred from the digital camera into a personal computer for storage or manipulation or can be transferred to a printer to create a hardcopy output of the digital images. Typically the data in the header part of an image file is not reproduced when viewing or printing the digital image.
Digital cameras typically have the capability to maintain the current date and time. Typically each digital image file header contains the time and date that the image was created. Some digital cameras have the ability to stamp or add the date and time information into the color data in the image file. Once the date and time information has been added or stamped into the color data information in the image file, the date and time information becomes part of the image and is visible whenever the image is displayed or printed. Typically the user can choose one of the corners of the digital image and the color of the text used to display the date and time information.
Problems can occur when the color of the date and time stamp is near the color of the image at the stamping location (for example a blue stamp in a blue sky). This makes it difficult or impossible to see the date and time stamp in the digital image. The current solution is for the user to select a different color for the stamp or move the stamp to a different location. This requires an extra step for the user.
Scanners typically do not track the current date and time. The date and time information currently can be added to the electronic image from a scanner in an image editor. Image editors are complex programs that many users are not comfortable using. Using an image editor is an extra step in addition to the scanning process.
The user may want to automatically stamp a digital image with information that is not limited to the date and time the image was created. There is a need to add or stamp digital images with additional information and automatically choose a color for the information that allows high contrast between the image and the stamped information.
A digital image is stamped with user definable information. The information can be textual information or a bitmap supplied by the user. The textual information is inserted using a color that is automatically selected for high contrast at the location of the stamp. The bitmap information replaces the digital information at the location of the stamp.